A great label maker can mean the difference between an unorganized mess or a clean space. The best label maker you can buy is the Brother P-Touch PDT600, thanks to its high-quality design, connectivity options, and versatility.

Having an organized home or office can seriously boost productivity and simply make things a lot nicer. But who can remember where everything goes? That's why we have label makers: To make it easier for ourselves — and others — to know where things are supposed to go. But having an out-of-date or broken label maker defeats the purpose of having one in the first place. Not every label maker is easy to use, and some are simply better buys than others.

While most label makers use a thermal printing mechanism instead of ink cartridges, you will still have to replace the label tape, so it's worth looking into the price of that tape and how long a roll will last.

You'll also want to think about the layout of the keyboard. When you're printing out lots of labels, you want to be able to type quickly and efficiently.

Of course, the actual labels are important, too. Different label makers support different tape and font-sizes, so it's a good idea to pick one that offers a couple different options. Some label makers have rechargeable battery packs, which we think is preferable, while others use replaceable AA or AAA batteries.

Read on in the slides below to check out our top picks.

The best label maker overall

Why you'll love it: The Brother P-Touch PDT600 is beautifully designed with a full keyboard and color display, plus, it supports handheld and PC-connected use.

Brother may be best known as a printer brand, but the company also makes some excellent label makers. Of all the label makers we researched, the Brother P-Touch PTD600 is the best of the bunch.

There are plenty of reasons we think this is a great label maker for your home or office. For starters, it features a nice, big, QWERTY keyboard, which is perfect for those of you who need to pump out labels quickly. Unlike most other label makers, the PDT600 also features a color display. Sure, that may not be all that important for a label maker, but it's a nice touch that helps make the label maker easy to use.

Perhaps the best thing about this label maker is that it's actually a hybrid handheld device that you can also use as a PC-connected label maker. That makes it a little more flexible and helps ensure it's as useful as possible. It can be used with either a PC or a Mac.

The label maker is also able to print labels with up to seven lines of text, supports tapes in five different widths, with a 24mm (or 1-inch) maximum tape size, and supports up to eight different font sizes.

There are a few downsides to the label maker. For starters, it's battery-powered with AA batteries that are not included, though thankfully you can use it plugged in to an AC outlet. It's also a little expensive compared to the other options.

The best rechargeable label maker

Dymo

Why you'll love it: The DYMO LabelManager 280 has a big QWERTY keyboard and can connect to your PC, but the best thing about it is its rechargeable battery.

This is the first of three DYMO label makers on this list, though to be fair, there are only a few companies that actually make label makers. There are also only a few label makers with rechargeable batteries, and the best one is the DYMO LabelManager 280.

Of course, the rechargeable battery is only one great aspect of this label maker. The LabelManager 280 also boasts a QWERTY keyboard that's easy to type on, so you can make labels quickly. It can be used as a standalone handheld device or connected to a computer.

There are a few downsides to the DYMO LabelManager 280. The display is not backlit, and as such, it could be a little hard to see depending on the lighting conditions. It's also not as versatile with tape widths as some other label makers in our guide. It only supports a maximum of half-inch tape, so if you're looking for a device that supports thicker tape, you may want to keep looking.

Still, despite those downsides the DYMO LabelManager 280 is clearly a very capable machine, and even scored 4/5 stars over at PC Mag.

Pros: Rechargeable battery, QWERTY keyboard, PC-connectable

Cons: Only supports up to half-inch tape, non-backlit screen, a little pricey

The best budget label maker

Dymo

Why you'll love it: The DYMO LabelManager 160 features a nice big QWERTY keyboard and six font sizes for just $20 on sale.

DYMO doesn't just make top-tier, expensive label makers, it also makes some great budget ones. The DYMO LabelManager 160 is the best of the bunch for anyone who doesn't want to spend a lot on a label maker.

There are a few reasons we recommend this label maker as our budget option. Like many more expensive label makers, it features a full QWERTY keyboard. It's also got a pretty big display, and while that display isn't backlit, we wouldn't expect it to be in this price range. The device supports six font sizes, eight text styles, and 200 symbols.

As you might expect, there are a few downsides here. For starters, the device requires six AAA batteries to work, and those batteries aren't included. It also only really functions as a handheld device, so you won't be able to use it in conjunction with your PC or phone. Like some other DYMO devices, it also only supports up to half-inch tape.

Still, for this price, you can't do better, and we think it's perfect for those who simply want to label some things in their home and don't intend to use the label maker every day.

The best PC-connected label maker

Handheld label makers are great, but sometimes all you need is one that you can use like a little printer that's connected to your PC and not used any other way. If that's you (or your office), then Brother has a great one: the Brother P-Touch PT-P700.

The label maker can be used with a Mac or a PC and supports a pretty huge range of sizes, fonts, and types. It supports tape sizes up to 24mm or 1-inch, and it can print up to seven lines of text. It also has an automatic tape cutter, which makes it even more convenient.

Safe to say, given its heavy-duty design and computer connectivity, this device is probably better suited to office use than home use, but of course, there's nothing preventing home users from making good use of the P-Touch PT-P700 if they so choose.

There are a few downsides to this label maker. While it's built more for desk use, you can't power it with a USB cable. It has to be plugged into an AC outlet or powered through batteries. Of course, it also doesn't have a keyboard or display, but that's hardly a downside given that you'll only be buying this if you want PC-connectivity anyway.

Despite the downsides, most who have bought this label maker seem to like it. It sits in with a 4.2-star average on Amazon.

The best phone-connected label maker

Dymo

Why you'll love it: The DYMO MobileLabeler supports up to 1-inch tape and it can connect to your PC, Android phone, or iPhone.

PC-connected label makers are great and all, but the world's going mobile. Unfortunately, there aren't all that many mobile-compatible label makers, but of the few that do exist, the DYMO MobileLabeler is the best.

Like the Brother P-Touch PT-P700, the DYMO MobileLabeler isn't a handheld/mobile-connected hybrid but rather built to work solely as a mobile-connected device. That means that you won't get a keyboard or display on the device, but instead, it works kind of like a miniature printer.

The MobileLabeler supports a wider range of label sizes than the other DYMO label makers on this list and can print tape of up to 1-inch in width. It also boasts a rechargeable battery, which could be important given the mobile nature of this device.

Last but not least, while it's built for mobile use, it also supports PC connectivity on Windows 7 or later or MacOS 10.9 or later. When it comes to mobile, you'll need Android 4.4.2 or later, or iOS 8.1 or later. It connects to your phone through Bluetooth.

There are some downsides, of course. The app is usable, but it's not all that well-designed. Thankfully, that could be changed with an update - if DYMO chooses to do so.

Subscribe to our newsletter. Find all the best offers at our Coupons page. Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the Insider Picks team. We highlight products and services you might find interesting. If you buy them, we get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners. We frequently receive products free of charge from manufacturers to test. This does not drive our decision as to whether or not a product is featured or recommended. We operate independently from our advertising sales team. We welcome your feedback. Email us at insiderpicks@businessinsider.com.